We have come to worship him

Introduction

Christmas 2017

Introduction

Connecting with God – people through the ages have sought to connect with God.

· Many different means

· Built idols and altars and temples

· Set up different religious systems and rules

· Have gone on pilgrimages to find God

· Often they have worn themselves out in this pursuit. They have been frustrated in their searching.

· But we also find stories through the ages of when God takes the initiative and reaches out and finds people - sometimes when they had given up hope in ever finding him him.

The story of Jacob’s ladder

· Many years ago about 4000 years ago, a man named Jacob wanted God’s blessing. He thought his older brother was going to get that blessing instead of him. So he used bribery and deceit to try to get this blessing.

· His older brother Esau got really angry and threatened to kill Jacob. So his parents hurriedly sent the younger brother away to visit relatives in another country

· Jacob runs for his life. He ends up sleeping outside one night. He found a stone that served as a pillow, and went to sleep.

· That night he had a strange dream. In his dream, he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

· Then from the top of the staircase, God spoke to him and promised him that he would be with him, bless him, and make him a great nation and give him this land.

· When the man woke up, he realized that he had just an unexpected meeting with God. He wasn’t even looking for God, and God had found him. He decided to call that place “the House of God” or Bethel.

A place as a dwelling for God’s name

· About 500 years later, a man named Moses talked with God and God told him that one day the Lord would choose a place as a dwelling for His Name and all God’s people were supposed to go to this place to worship God.

· For decades, no one knew where that place would be. People worshipped God in many different places. The main place of worship was a tent or tabernacle that could easily be moved to various locations.

A temple is built

· But finally after about 500 years, the great King Solomon built a temple in Jerusalem and God declared that this was going to be God’s house – a place for him to dwell forever.

· Jerusalem became the holy city, the place where God lived.

· For centuries, God’s people came to this city and to the temple in that city to pray and worship God – and God met with them there, spoke to them through prophets, answered their prayers and blessed them.

· God’s people would sing songs with words like this - “Let us go to his dwelling place, let us worship at his footstool” . Let us go to Jerusalem. That is where God is. That is where his house is. That is where his throne is.

· But unfortunately, God’s people were very disobedient and started worshipping other gods right in the temple that was supposed to be God’s house – and God allowed the Babylonians to destroy the temple, his house. He was no longer going to allow his people to meet with him in His house.

Another temple is built

· Then about 500 years after the construction of the first temple, God told the Jews to build his house again.

· So for another 500 years, God’s people came to this second temple and worshipped God there. Eventually King Herod decided to make the temple a lot larger and it came to be even more impressive than Solomon’s temple.

· But God seemed to be strangely silent. This was his house, but he was no longer speaking.

· The Jewish people kept coming faithfully to the house to offer sacrifices and pray – but it became more of a ritual, rather than connecting with the God of heaven.

· Then one day, a strange thing happened in Jerusalem. Some important religious leaders came to Jerusalem to worship.

· Why was this so strange? Let’s read the story and I will show you.

Text:

The Magi from the East, not the Jewish leaders, came to worship.

Who were the Magi?

· from Persia, 2000 km away. About the same distance from Jerusalem as Kyiv is from Jerusalem

· Religious leaders, priests

· studied the stars, interpreted the stars - astrologers

· Advisors to the king - They were the leaders of a council whose duty was to organize the process of electing a king and to serve as his advisers in governing the nation.

· Important, educated powerful people

They come to Jerusalem

· One day, when they were looking at the stars, they had seen a special new star. Using their understanding of what the stars meant, they determined that a new king had been born for the Jews.

· They expected that this new king would be found in Jerusalem. All kings of Judah after David had been born in Jerusalem. This was where kings lived.

· They came to Jerusalem to worship this king of the Jews – not just to see him, but to worship him. This was not their king – but they still came from 2000 km away to worship him. Very strange!

The Jews in Jerusalem were not interested in worshipping their new King – also very strange.

· they did not seem to be aware that a king had been born.

· They were surprised by the news. They already had a king (King Herod) and Herod did not have a new-born son.

· The Bible says that King Herod and all Jerusalem was disturbed (). Not rejoicing, but troubled. Actually, very troubled. The king was very threatened by this announcement.

· But the king pretended that it did not bother him at all.

· He has a secret meeting with the Magi and tells them to go to Bethlehem to see if they can find this king- and then come back and tell him.

· He had no interest in worshipping this king. If the story is really true, he planned to murder this threat to his throne.

Those in power generally do not welcome a new king.

· God’s truth, even though it is good news, always threatens those who are in power. Why? Because God’s good news is about God coming to rule this world – and that threatens those who are currently in power.

· Soviet Union – outlawed the proclamation of the Gospel outside the church buildings

· China – singing of Handel’s Messiah in public is now forbidden. Afraid that these Christian songs will bring Western influence. Or is it the words, “King of Kings, Lord of lords, And He shall reign forever and ever” that trouble them.

· The 7 most dictatorial countries in the world are also among the 20 countries where Christians are persecuted for their faith.

· Don’t be surprised when the educated and powerful people in the world do not seem interested in the Good News.

The Magi came to worship a certain person, not in a certain place.

The Magi came to Jerusalem.

· The Holy City, the place where God’s temple was located

· 3 times a year, all Jewish men gathered in this city to offer burnt offerings and to rejoice in the presence of God.

· Even people from other nations occasionally came to worship at the temple in Jerusalem. Eg the Ethiopian eunuch.

· But these magi were not interested in worshipping in Jerusalem or in the temple.

· They wanted to meet the King, not see a building or a holy city.

· How disappointed they must have been! 2000 km of travelling – and then finding out that this king was not here after all.

But then God reached out to them

· Then the Magi found out that the Word of God said that he would be born in Bethlehem.

· “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” -

· Bethlehem - a very small town – under 1000, maybe only about 300 people. It was not on any major roads.

· Much smaller and less important than Jerusalem. Why would the new king be born there? Strange.

· But they had come all this way. Might as well check it out.

· Then God showed them the star again, hovering right over the town of Bethlehem. They were overjoyed.

· They found this baby named Jesus in this little town.

· I am sure they were surprised at his surroundings. They didn’t find him in a palace. There were no guards or even servants. His parents were not wealthy or important people. Just ordinary people. His dad was a carpenter.

The magi worshipped a person, not a place.

· But they worshipped the one that they found, even though it was not at all what they expected or in the place where they expected

· I have had several conversations with people who tell me that they have gone to holy places to get closer to God

· Tens of thousands of people will visit Bethlehem this Christmas

· Almost 3 million will travel to Israel as tourists each year.

· One magazine says that if you go to Israel, “You will encounter God in a new way”

· Yet we read of no believers in the NT ever going to visit Bethlehem after the time of his birth. They didn’t travel to Jerusalem much either.

· In fact, the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 AD and was never rebuilt.

There are no true holy places for Christians.

· Some of you have had the opportunity to travel to Israel. My son-in-law will be travelling there in January. I think it would be a great history lesson and help us understand the geography and history of the Bible better.

· But for those of us who have not had that opportunity, we do not have to feel that we are not as close to God as they are.

· the New Testament makes clear that we have no holy places on this earth where God is more present than in any other place.

· Listen to what Jesus told the Samaritan woman. , .

· Now that Jesus is in heaven, God’s presence is not limited to any one geographical location.

· In fact, the Bible teaches us that Jesus lives among his people, not in a special building or in a special location. He indwells us by His Spirit and He talks to us through His Word.

· God comes to us – wherever we are. We don’t have to go to find him in some special holy place. He finds us.

The Magi came to worship a Newborn king.

Herod was the current “king of the Jews”

· Herod has purchased the title “King of the Jews” from Augustus Caesar.

· But he wasn’t born a king. He wasn’t even born a prince. He paid a lot of money to get this position. He bribed the Romans to kill Antigonus his wife’s uncle who had been the king in Jerusalem up to then.

· The magi were not interested in worshipping Herod. They were looking for a newborn king. This is very strange.

No ordinary man is born a king.

· A boy who is born in a royal family may be the heir to the throne. He is called a prince, but not a king.

· Why not? The current king has to die first, and then they will become a king.

· Prince George born July 22, 2013. Was he born a king? No because first of all his great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth has to die, then his grandfather, Prince Charles would be king. If Prince Charles would die, then George’s father, Prince William would be next in line.

Jesus had always been king.

· But Jesus was born already a king. He was different than all earthly kings. He was a king from the very moment of his birth. In fact, he had been a king before he was born.

· Jesus said to the Jews – Before Abraham was born, I am.

· He is the eternal king without beginning and without end.

· He was the Son of God, sent from heaven’s glory to live among men.

· This is whom the magi worshipped. This is whom we want to worship.

Application

Jesus is our connection to God.

· People have sought God for centuries. They have built temples and altars and holy places in an attempt to find God. They have travelled long distances on pilgrimages to find God.

· But in Jesus, we see that God came to find us! God made the connection. Jesus is that connection.

· – “you will see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.

· Jesus is calling to mind the picture from where Jacob has a dream and sees angels going up and down on a ladder.

· In , the angels are going up and down on the Son of Man, not on a staircase.

· Jesus is that staircase. He is the way to the Father. He is our connection to God.

· Jesus is the place where people now meet God. Jacob called that place Beth-el—“house of God”—because he said, “Surely God is in this place.”

· Now Jesus is the new Beth-el. Jesus is the place where God is present. Ever since God sent his Son to earth, Jesus is the place where God appears most clearly among men, and where people find fellowship with God.

· Jesus was saying to Nathanael, “I am the link with heaven. Both upward and downward.” When we want to get close to God, we have to go up on Jesus. When God wants to get close to us and bless us, he comes to us through Jesus.

· Jesus is where we meet God. If you want to say, ”Where on earth today is a holy place that I can go and be close to God? ” Answer, ”Jesus! ”You want to go to a holy place? Stand still and come to Jesus.

Are you looking for a deeper connection with God? Follow the example of the magi.

· Don’t be dismayed if the majority do not accept what you have found to be true. Don’t worry if people around you are not interested. Continue to follow what God tells you in His Word

· Come to Jesus. Don’t look for God in special places. Get to know Jesus. That is how we connect to God.

· Worship him as King. Recognize that when you come to Jesus, he will take charge of your life. It will require us to submit to him, to give him our life, to give him our treasures.